


A Drabble an Episode

by were_lemur



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Drabble Collection, Gen, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-01-19 13:09:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 3,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12410913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/were_lemur/pseuds/were_lemur
Summary: A drabble for every episode of Supernatural.





	1. 1:1 Pilot

Noise from the living room jolts Sam awake. 

He's always known that his past could catch up with him. He runs through the possibilities as he eases through the dark; which slice of his past is coming back for another shot at him? He thinks of Jess, still peacefully asleep. Whatever this is, it will pay for threatening her.

He lunges at the dark form, and finds himself in a fight for his life -- but it's just Dean, not some monster from the past reaching out to destroy everything he's worked so hard for. 

Everything is going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got tired of waiting for the micro-hellatus to be over.
> 
> "Present day" is now 13 1/2 years in the past. Yikes!


	2. 1:2 Wendigo

The wendigo has them cornered, and Sam is considering a suicidal lunge toward it, a last-ditch attempt to buy Haley and her brothers a chance to escape, when Dean shows up with the flare gun and saves all of them.

The wendigo topples, in flames, to the floor of the mine: one less monster in the world.

Three more lives saved.

Sam knows he should be happy about that.

But for a moment, in the heat and the flames and the smell of charring flesh, he's not in an abandoned mine in Colorado.

He's back at Stanford, watching Jess burn.


	3. 13:1 Lost and Found

The phone jolts Dean out of a dreamless sleep. He rolls over and and reaches and all of his weight goes on his cracked ribs, sending electric-hot pain through him and he twists the other way, cursing, heart hammering, disoriented.

He's been worked over by a pro.

There's a bottle of Vicodin he keeps on his bedside table. If only he can get it without moving too much. He eases onto his back.

"Definitely gonna let Cas patch me up this time -- " 

That's when he remembers: wings burned on the ground, and a hunter's funeral.

 _That_ pain leaves him breathless.


	4. 13:2 Rising Son

It's the same stupid argument they've been having since leaving Washington; it never stops, just gets interrupted by eating and sleeping and oh yeah, a Prince of Hell showing up, and Dean is beyond tired of it.

But Sam's dug his heels in and the only way it's gonna stop is if he agrees to make nice with Lucifer's kid, and that's not. Gonna. Happen.

Finally he can't take it anymore. He slams out of Sam's room, before he can start throwing punches, or worse. Before he slips and shouts _if it wasn't for him, Cas would still be alive._


	5. 3:13 Patience

To Sam's extreme lack-of-surprise, the Men of Letters have nothing in their library about raising children. So, after Dean stomped out of the Bunker, he heads for the nearest bookstore. He invites Jack along, but is relieved when he shakes his head.

As always, when he steps into a bookstore or a library, he feels lighter. Somewhere, there will be a book with the information he needs.

Three hour later, he leaves, nearly empty-handed.

He supposed he shouldn't be surprised -- "How to Raise a Naphil" wasn't exactly something he was going to find on the shelf at the local Borders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I refuse to believe that Sam wouldn't know the singular of "nephilm."
> 
> Since it's been established that the Supernatural world has diverged from ours, why shouldn't one of the differences being that Borders didn't go bankrupt in their universe?


	6. 13:4 The Big Empty

One moment, the weedy patch of earth is empty. The next, it's occupied by what seems to be a man in a tan trench-coat.

The form in the grass stirs, pushes itself to its feet, looks around, as if it's never seen the world before.

The awakened sleeper stares up at the sphere of incandescent gas that hangs in the sky. _The Sun,_ he recalls, from memories he's stolen from Castiel.

He wonders how long it will take him to find whatever it is that's waking things in the Empty. He won't rest -- literally -- until he's made it stop. Forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just some rampant speculation on my part.


	7. 13:5 Advanced Thanatology

One moment, she's backstabbed by an angel, the next she has a scythe in her hand. 

She realizes that she doesn't have to wait for the Winchesters' next fatal mistake, she can sweep down on them and end them all; the only thing to decide is what form their deaths will take. Something especially nasty for Castiel ...

But then the full knowledge of her office hits her and she sees all the universes where Sam and Dean didn't exist, and she knows why she can't throw them into the Empty.

The multiverse, it seems, has a twisted sense of humor.


	8. 13:6 Tombstone

Sam wishes, more than anything, that he could just be happy that Cas is back. That he could kill the suspicion that is scratching like rats claws on cardboard at the back of his brain. The part that's asking, _is this really Cas, is this_ all _Cas._

Dean is smiling, really smiling, all the way to his eyes, for the first time in weeks. Jack seems more confident now that his chosen father is around to guide him.

But Sam knows, as well as anyone, that good things don't just happen this easily. And they never come without a price.


	9. 13:7 War of the Worlds

For a moment, Arthur Ketch gives into a most unprofessional impulse; he allows himself to hope.

From childhood, he'd known his place in the world; he'd been a part of something bigger, better, than himself. Maybe, he thinks, he can have that again, with the Winchesters.

He remembered the day he'd spent with Dean, drinking ruinously expensive Scotch and hunting vampires. They'd bonded, man to man, killer to killer. Surely Dean, at least, would understand that nothing he'd done to them, or to Mary, had been personal.

Later, tending his gunshot wound, he reminds himself that hope is for fools.


	10. 13:8 The Scorpion and the Frog

For a moment, Dean thought it could actually work.

He watched Alice as she weighed her chances, lightning-quick. For a moment, he was afraid that fear would get the better of her.

Then she picked up the lighter. 

Dean tensed, ready to lunge at Barthamus, to grab the second half of the spell from him in the few seconds between the fire starting and his complete immolation.

But, in a final screw-you to his killers, the crossroads demon crumpled the millennia-old parchment in his fist and pulled it to his burning chest.. Before Dean had even moved, it was ash.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can you tell that I was REALLY ANNOYED with the writers having Sam blow on a fire to try to put it out? (And the episode was going so well before the writers decided to toss Sam the idiot ball, and it wasn't even NECESSARY.)
> 
> Grrrrrrr.


	11. Chapter 11

"If I don't go, people will die."

And if she does go, he's going to spend his life waiting to hear that she's gotten herself killed, just like Missouri.

"Patience, don't." In desperation, James says the one thing he thinks will make her stop and think and turn around, will keep her safe. "You go now, you choose that life, you don't come back."

For a moment, she stops, and he thinks maybe it's worked.

Then she walks to her car without looking back.

(John Winchester could have told him; you don't bluff with what you're not willing to lose.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The parallels between Patience and Sam leaving home (but in opposite directions) really struck me.


	12. 13:10 Wayward Sisters

It's the first in a series of long nights. Nights when you pretend to sleep while Claire pretends not to cry, because neither of you really believed that you weren't invincible.

Until now.

Until Kaia.

 _Don't blame yourself_ , Jody told Claire, will tell her again and again until even she almost believes it.

Nobody tells you that, and you wonder if it's because nobody's thought to blame you, or because everybody knows it's your fault.

Your vision.

Your mistake.

And so you lie awake and torture yourself with what-ifs, and pray that your next mistake doesn't get anybody else killed.


	13. 13:11 Breakdown

Nobody blames Donna when she takes a little time off, long enough for Wendy to get out of the hospital, to drive her home, to spend a few days with family. And if she cries herself to sleep nights and drowns her sorrows in chocolate lava cake, that's her business.

When she finally comes back to work, three later, she thinks that her heart's healed.

Then she sees Doug, how he smiles to see her and then remembers, and his smile fades. And her heart's shredded all over again.

Even worse, it's _awkward_.

No more workplace romances, she tells herself.


	14. 13:12 Various and Sundry Villains

It's painful, watching Dean try to be positive.

But Sam knows that arguing is useless. After all these decades, Dean still thinks it's his job to protect him, to take care of him, to make him feel better even when they're completely screwed.

He should make himself nod, and smile, and pretend to be convinced, and eventually Dean will pretend to be convinced that he's convinced, but suddenly it's too much. "I need a shower," he says, and walks out.

Maybe if he stays long enough, the hot water will chase away the chill.

But he'll never, ever be clean.


	15. 13:13 Devil's Bargain

It's been weeks, Dean thinks. Weeks when who-knows-what could have happened to Cas. The knowledge is like a punch in the gut; Asmodeus could have killed Cas, and he would never have even known it, would have just gone on talking to Evil Colonel Sanders as if nothing had ever happened.

Cas is supposed to be his best friend, his brother, but he didn't even notice, hadn't even been suspicious. Not even once, in all those weeks, had he wondered why Cas hadn't come home.

"Shapeshifter," Cas says, as if that forgives everything, but the guilt weighs on Dean's soul.


	16. 13:14 Good Intentions

"Whatever it takes," Castiel says, and Sam feels sick to his stomach.

Somewhere along the way, he'd lost sight of the fact that Cas, his friend and brother-in-arms and in all but blood, was still Castiel, Angel of the Lord. He hadn't exactly forgotten that Cas had threated to kill him and throw Dean back into hell, but that was buried under so many other memories that they'd shared.

Sam remembers; Castiel had been willing to sacrifice his sanity for the greater good. 

Icy fear trickles down his spine, and, for just a moment, his fingers itch for a weapon.


	17. 13:15 A Most Holy Man

For a moment, Dean seriously considers telling the Father the truth about God.

"His name's Chuck," he imagines himself saying. "And he's kind of a douchebag. While the rest of us were trying to stop the apocalypse -- that he'd ultimately set in motion, by the way, because he sucked as a dad -- he was pretending to be a third-rate author with a drinking problem.

"Hell, even the apocalypses he didn't contribute to by rejecting his son or locking up his sister, they still happened on his watch -- "

But he stops himself; destroying the Padre's faith won't do anyone any good.


	18. 13:16 Scoobynatural

Daphne doesn't know what to make of Dean Winchester.

He's hunky, he's funny, he's definitely a dog person (which is a must) and at first she was charmed by him; not so much that she'd consider stepping out on Freddie, but if she'd been single, she would have definitely let him take her out for a malt. But then he'd started acting like a jerk to Freddie; insulting him and challenging him to a race.

It's not until she hears Velma complaining about Sam and his big shoulders that everything finally makes sense.

Dean totally has a thing for Freddie.


	19. 13:17 The Thing

Sam walks in to find Dean busy on his laptop.

"What's up?"

"Nothing," Dean says, slamming the laptop shut; he gives what he must think is an innocent smile. He couldn't have looked guiltier if he tried.

Sam might have let the whole thing go, if it hadn't been for the childish delight that Dean had taken in putting signs on his back. He pretends to walk by, disinterested, but then snags the laptop and opens it.

"You're erasing your tentacle porn?"

"It's just, it's not the same anymore."

"Real life didn't live up to the fantasy, huh?"

"Shut up."


	20. 13:18 Bring 'em Back Alive

"If we can't open the door, then I should have never come back!"

The words hit Sam like a punch in the gut. Sure, he'd been worried about Dean, would rather have gone with him than waited behind, but he hadn't let himself think about what would happen if the gate closed before Dean got back.

He can't think about that. Can't revisit the despair he'd felt when Dean was in Hell (either in Gabriel's pocket universe or for real) or Purgatory, and he'd been alone.

Once, he'd denied it, but he can't anymore. He'd be lost without his brother.


	21. 13:19 Funeralia

Castiel's mind keeps coming back to the Empty. All the angels, forever asleep. If he could wake them up -- not all of them, not the Uriels and the Raphaels who would rather destroy than preserve. But those few fanatics aside, most of the angels can be entrusted with the business of preserving Heaven.

Awakening them might be the only chance. Hannah first; she would know who could be trusted.

But who is he, to choose who will sleep and who is to awaken?

He sets the question aside. No matter his course, his first mission is the same: find Gabriel.


	22. 13:20 Unfinished Business

Mary isn't sure when she starts thinking of Jack as more than a potential way back home, an ally, a friend.

But somehow, in the weeks of fighting for survival, she's come to really care about him.

He might not look it, but there are moments when she's forcibly reminded that he's less than a year old. And she can't help feeling guilty about her own boys' lost childhoods.

But maybe it's because he reminds her so much of her own boys; he's smart, he's brave, but above all, he's compassionate. He's a protector, just like Sam and Dean are.


	23. 13:21 Beat the Devil

For a moment, Sam seriously considers picking the vampires. It's a nasty way to die, but at least it'll be quick.

But he can't go to his death knowing that his last living act is to doom his brother. At best, Dean will hold it together long enough to get Mary and Jack back to their world before committing suicide by monster. At worst, he's already on his way back here.

So he'll keep living, for Dean's sake. And if Lucifer is the price he'll have to pay to save his brother's life, well, it's a choice he's made before.


	24. 13:22 Exodus

Mary sees the hurt, the betrayal, on her boys' faces, and for a moment she wavers.

But as much as she wants to go home with them, her sense of responsibility gives her no choice but to stay.

She wasn't the one who said no to Azazael all those decades ago, and doomed the world. But even if she wasn't the Mary Campbell who made what was supposed to have been the right choice, it was still a version of her that made the decision.

It's her fault this world is broken. She's not going to leave until it's fixed.


	25. 13:23 Let the Good Times Roll

The archangel blade spins away, leaving his brother defenseless. Triumph surges through Lucifer.

He's going to kill not only Michael, but Dean Winchester too. And then Sam, though he might take his time with him, remind him of who's in charge.

He can still taste the younger Winchester's agony, his terror. His defeat.

Sam moves, and Lucifer sees a blur of gold, but he's too slow to stop Dean's hand, powered by Michael's grace, from grasping the blade.

As the blade shoves in and darkness obliterates his world, he has time for one last thought:

Sam Winchester's just killed him.


	26. 14:1 Stranger in a Strange Land

It takes all of Sam's willpower to smile, gently and encouragingly, at Nick. To not punch him in the face, and keep hitting until there's nothing left.

None of it is Nick's fault; if he'd said no, Lucifer would have just found another vessel. And how could Sam expect him to gain control, when even Dean couldn't --

He veers his thought away from that cliff, fast.

He knows, intellectually, that it wasn't Nick who spent more than a century in the cage torturing him, _violating_ him. 

But it's Nick's face that even now, years later, shows up in his nightmares.


	27. 14:2 Gods and Monsters

As Michael walks toward the church door, Dean braces himself for the fight of his life.

All he needs is a second, maybe two, of control. But he'll have to time it just right. Have to wait until Michael's about to strike, until he has the Archangel blade in his hand.

Then all he'll have to do is grab control of his body long enough to stab himself, and take Michael down with him.

 _Always did want to go out in a blaze of glory,_ he tells himself. This is about as literal of one as he could've hoped for.


	28. 14:3 The Scar

Staring at the scar Michael left him with, Dean can't help flashing on Castiel's handprint, seared into his skin.

Then, being raised from Hell seemed like a genuine miracle, even if it was one he hadn't deserved. Until he'd learned what the angels really had planned for him, and Sam. And the world.

Taking the Mark of Cain had seemed like penance at the time. Until it cost Charlie, and other innocents, their lives.

And now? He can't help think that Michael's absence is just a reprieve. That more people are about to die; more red added to his ledger.


	29. 14:4 Mint Condition

It's the same pattern as always; Dean deflects Sam's support by changing the subject.

Fortunately, Sam has gotten even better at deflecting than Dean has.

The story of the disastrous Halloween party has the advantage of being true, and of course Dean, as solution-oriented as always, seizes the opportunity to make it better, by sheer force of will if necessary.

And Sam won't have to explain the real reason.

Tomorrow will mark the anniversaries of both Mom and Jess's death. And while Amara has given him a second chance with his mother, he knows he'll never get that with Jess.


	30. 14:5 Nightmare Logic

He can see it, clear as day. The horror on their faces as they realize that Michael was never gone, that he's always been there, hiding in plain sight, watching, waiting for everyone to be in the bunker.

Shoved aside, he can do nothing to stop it, not when Michael, not when he starts killing, not when he snaps Mary's neck, not even when he presses his palm to Sam's forehead and burns him from the inside out.

He can only watch as Michael lays waste to the world.

Dean tries to tell himself it's just a nightmare.

Isn't it?


	31. 14:6 Optimism

Listening to himself lecture Charlie, telling her to stay with the group, keep hunting, Sam can't believe the words that are coming out of his mouth.

He should be telling her to get out, now, before she ends up like his Charlie, beaten to death in the bathroom of a cheap motel.

Or worse.

He feels as if he's reading a script written by someone else, someone he doesn't even know.

Being a leader is changing him in ways that he didn't ever imagine. Ways that he's really not sure he likes.

Sometimes he doesn't even feel like himself anymore.


	32. 14:7 Unhuman Nature

Of all the things Dean's ever done, handing over Baby's keys is damn near the scariest.

Jack's never driven before, he could send the Imapa into a ditch, run her into a wall, turn her into the path of a speeding semi -- 

Just the thought of her gleaming black skin crumpled and torn makes him sick to his stomach. He has to fight the impulse to snatch the keys back.

But once they're out there, cruising along, Jack grinning like he doesn't have only a few weeks to live, Dean thinks: this is one of the best things he's done.


	33. 14:8 Byzantium

Staring down at the small, still body, Dean feels sick to his stomach.

He knows where she's going. He's been there.

And waiting for her? Will be someone like him.

Someone who long ago forgot who he was, someone who only wants to hurt her, because he's been hurt so much, for so long, he's got nothing left inside but rage

They may have saved Jack, but there's a price to be paid. There's always a price.

And seeing the look that passes between Cas and Jack, he suspects that Lily might not be the only one who's paying it.


	34. 14:9 The Spear

Everything goes -- not according to plan, but close enough to what Sam has in mind.

They come in hot, and when Dean attacks Sam has a moment's hope that Plan A will actually work, for once. Skewer Michael, and pick up some Boston Market on the way back to the Bunker.

But then Michael's in Dean, and Sam lets him have his Bond-villain monologue before he huffs a laugh. "You didn't really think we were _that_ stupid, did you?"

Then he springs the trap that he and Dean had started planning, months ago, when they realized Michael wasn't completely gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, please, please let the writers remember that Sam and Dean are smart!


End file.
